murphy, editor of "citizen jane politics" and erin mcpike reporter for "real clear politics." thank you both for being here. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> patricia, the gop platform is the most extreme ever. how does governor romney expect to handle this? >> well, i think we're absolutely going to see a republican convention in primetime that looks almost nothing like the republican convention that got started already in this platform committee. the platform committee is the most conservative of the conservative activists within the republican party. somebody like tony perkins from the family research council sits on that committee, casts those votes, convinces those other members to come along with with him and the family research council. when we get to the republican convention next week, we're going to see a very diverse group of people in primetime. we're going to hear the governor taking a much softer tone on a lot of these issues, where behind closed doors they really have been much, much more restrictive. >> isn't his platform, his

patricia murphy and erin mcpike, thank you for your time tonight. inside the secret gop plan it to block the obama agenda. we had the reporter with the details. [ male announcer ] this is anna, her long day teaching the perfect swing begins with back pain and a choice. take advil, and maybe have to take up to four in a day. or take aleve, which can relieve pain all day with just two pills. good eye. [ male announcer ] it started long ago. the joy of giving something everything you've got. it takes passion. and it's not letting up anytime soon. at unitedhealthcare insurance company, we understand that commitment. and always have. so does aarp, an organization serving the needs of americans 50 and over for generations. so it's no surprise millions have chosen an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement plans, they help cover some of the expenses medicare doesn't pay. and save you up to thousands in out-of-pocket costs. to find out more, request your free decision

. >> erin mcpike, with real clear politics. you have this race a dead heat, as you look at gallup and other polls. looking at the electoral map, you have the president at 221, the romney campaign at 181. this is essentially coming down to nine or 10 states, including wisconsin, which is now a battleground state. >> first of all, the national polls tell us a little bit about the electorate, but they are largely immaterial. the state polling is more important. there are those states in the middle. the real clear politics average show a different game than the tightness of the race. president obama is ahead in mostly all of them with the exception of north carolina. that is the only place mitt romney leads, and he leads with about one. . there is a much slimmer lead in florida, but it is still a lead. nevada, iowa. president obama has been doing better than mitt romney for a long period of time. >> the gavel is coming down in about 45 minutes, and, of course, we will show you every minute in tampa at the republican convention. the

erin mcpike, great to see all of you. as we look back at the arkansas koo archives, i want to show everybody who said it first and get reaction on the other side. >> because they will put you in chains called obama care and you will be dependent upon government and never break away. >> that was rick santorum comparing the affordable care act to chains in august of 2011. why isn't what's good for the goose good r for the gander? >> it's worth noting that rick santorum is not the presidential candidate and so comparing what biden -- >> but he's not the presidential candidate here. joe biden is not the presidential candidate either. we're talking about the type of rhetoric that's going back and forth that's led mitt romney to call president obama angry and unhinged. >> it's also worth noting that when we're talking about this whole rhetoric thing that while obama care would force people to pay into a system that's just subsidizing somebody else. it forces the young to pay for senior care that they will never actually receive

erin mcpike, for "clear plirks." jonathan martin, senior reporter at ""politico."" roberts, long-time "new york times" correspondent, prompt professor of public afirs at the george washington university. how much pushback are you getting from the romney campaign as you and other journalists raise questions about his record? >> not a huge, significant amount. i think they expected the scrutiny to come. they have put in place a staff, though, of folks around ryan which i find interesting. two of the aides, former capitol hill aides. the romney folks i think have put folks around that can explain some of the details about his budget blueprint that perhaps the typical campaign operative couldn't quite digest. so i think that to me is notable. but the pushback has been less about ryan, i think more intent on -- more intense on the general issue of medicare and want reporters to know we're not going to take this lying down. in fact, we're going to go on offense about what president obama would do to medicare under the acl -- >> i want to circle back to. that first, steve

and erin mcpike is covering the campaign for real clear politics. i want to start with erin.king beforehand. you know all these people, all these press people that work for this guy. he either likes them, knows what they're up to, doesn't mind them being hit. i mean, he's got a thick skin for this stuff. >> he loves his campaign staff. and his campaign staff loves him. he will never fire any one of them. >> but he fired that gay guy that was spokesman for the foreign policy team. he dumped him in a new york minute. >> before he got to know him. he had just come on the campaign. but listen, he's known eric fehrnstrom since 2002, since he was running for governor. eric fehrnstrom is his favorite person inside the campaign. when mitt romney -- >> what about service? he says in that wonderful quote if i don't get the service i need i dump this person. well, he's not getting the service he needs from some of these people. when they say kiss my -- this is a holy site. it makes them look like a fool. although the press should have looked worse he ended up looking worse. and this who

let's bring in erin mcpike, national political reporter for real clear politics. in, great to see you, good morning. >> you, too, thanks. >> jamie: how big an issue is medicare, particularly at this stage of the game, so close to the election? and, the convention, the independents or the persuadables? >> it is a big issue specifically because of florida. as you know, florida has 29 electoral votes and by far is this biggest battleground state and it is the one that mitt romney has to win. and, so some republicans are a little bit nervous about this, because there is a heavy population of senior citizens in florida, that depend on medicare and some of the criticism coming from the obama campaign is under paul ryan's plan in the past, it would end medicare as we know it and therefore seniors could not depend on it in the the way they do. and, that is some of the things we'll be hearing from democrats. and the attack ads that could come in florida, from the obama campaign could be damaging to mitt romney and his prospects there. >> jamie: before you tell me what presi

air erin mcpike wp susan bell percento and keith boykin. good afternoon to all of you.ll start with you. since sure not here in new york, before we get to paul ryan speech, we just heard from president obama there in new hampshire. is that the winning message? is that the argument that will resonate with olders voters come november? >> it certainly may. of course, it is what the obama campaign has been saying all along. the obama campaign thinks with this pick of paul ryan that they now have upper hand, with maybe seniors, but especially in the state of florida if they just keep the focus on medicare and saying that, in previousity racings of the pry an plan, he has tried to end medicare or proposed such a thing. of course paul ryan changed his tune somewhat o on this but they do think this is a great thing for the obama campaign. >> here is the thing, keith and susan. we were talking about this a few moments ago. george w. bush, when he was talk about privatizing social security, that didn't go well at all. folks from both parties came out and eventually squashed that.

erin mcpike from "real clear politics." good to have you on, erin. thank you. >> thank you. uma: we have this fox news alert now. a massive wildfire in northern california destroying at least 50 buildings, many of them homes. the ponderosa fire burning through more than 33 square miles so far. 1900 firefighters are battling the flames. lightning sparked the blaze last saturday, forcing thousands of people from their homes. >> just carry. like, you don't know what to grab. you get here and you forget things. we lost everything we own, personal pictures and everything. it is like, oh, my gosh. nobody should have to go through this once in a lifetime. uma: unbelievable. the fire is 35% contained. for more how crews are getting a handle, we're joined by a california fire spokesman. thank you so much for joining us today. >> yeah, good morning to you. uma: good morning to you as well. what are some of the biggest challenges as you tackle this blaze? >> the biggest challenge across california has been the dry conditions. that is what is really fueling this wildfire and nearly a do

jon: with us now political reporter for "real clear politics", erin mcpike. erin, sorry to butcher your name there. the democrats are saying extremist position on medicare. social darwinism that kind of thing. conveniently ignoring one of their own, oregon ron wyden is a cosponsor of the ryan plan. >> that's right. wyden is working with and worked with paul ryan on the recent proposal. don't forget paul ryan had a budge jet out four years now. this gone through several iterations. he changed medicare proposal from what he initially proposed in 2009 and 2010. jon: why are democrats so focused on medicare? because it the single issue ryan is so tied to? >> it is but look specifically to the state of florida with its 29 electoral votes, that mitt romney has to win that state if he has any hopes of beating president obama this fall. of course florida has a very heavy population of seniors, many of whom depend on medicare. and the idea that a republican budget proposal could dismantle part of medicare is a very important part of this debate. jon: well, i guess the

and erin mcpike, reporter for real clear politics. ing here to both of you, you and michelle. erin, i want to start with you. am i old fashioned or does flip-flopping not matter anymore? >> al, it mattered a lot in mitt romney's first run for the presidency. it was a big mark against him from his republican opponents when he was running in 2007 and 2008. it has not been nearly as big of a theme in this particular campaign. the obama campaign tried to simply paint mitt romney as an extreme conservative. but we're not hearing as much about the flip-flops throughout this general election. we got some of it in this past primary, but it was a bigger issue for mitt romney in that first election. and i think the romney campaign has tried really hard to show that mitt romney is a convicted politician. even if he has had these flip-flops in the past. >> well, he is convicted. just that he doesn't stay convicted long. michelle, let's look at a few of his flip-flops that i didn't mention. gun ownership in 2007 he said he owned a gun. days later h

joining me now is dana milbank and erin mcpike.hanks for joining me tonight, both of you. >> thank you. >> tonight, let me ask you, d a dana, seriously no jokes aside. boehner trying to rally the troops by saying he wants to go on the offensive. is this even believable? >> many americans do find the republican position to be offensive, so it's not surprising from what point of view. you know, the truth is republican house members and senators running for re-election were going to be charged with the ryan plan anyway. particularly in the house. they didn't just vote for this thing once, they did it over and over in this obsessi obsessive-compulsive tick. now it is the republican ticket. for the vast majority it's not going to matter. but where the battle is with the seats in play, this makes their challenge that much more difficult to hold on to control of the house. >> dana's right. when you look at the vote on republicans on the ryan plan, 228 voted yes. only ten voted no. and three didn't vote at all. so you have at least 228 rep

a and erin mcpike. thank you both for being here. take us inside the call for colorado and talk about health care in his speech. >> right now both republicans and democrats will tell you that sub bourban women throughout colorado are key to winning colorado. it's a very tight race out there. there's a new poll out this morning by quinnipiac and cbs showing him leading romney by five points. en the romney campaign will say suburban womens are critical to their efforts about winning colorado. the obama campaign knows about that as well. that's why they're specifically targeting them on this issue. >> nia-malika, he goes to colorado where this poll this morning says the president is behind. women are key. and he talks about his mother and his daughters. listen. >> my own mom turned 70 years old this year. and my sister and i lost her to cancer when she was just 52 years old. i often think about what would have happened if a doctor had caught her cancer sooner. or if she had been less worried about how to pay her bills and more time spen

let's turn to our political reporter, erin mcpike who is live on capitol hill. what do you know about this thing? >> basically i talked to the administration today exprkts white house is saying nothing. they are saying they don't know much about it. they have referred to the fact that there is an investigation going on, and they don't want to be saying anything about it until the investigation is over. the man making these allegations was potentially upset because there were relocation costs he was not paid. and so he is therefore upset and making some of these allegations as a result of that. >> quite frankly, some of the allegations and the actual words that were used were used on air earlier in the day. i guess our producers had a problem with them or something. i read them. if anybody has ever been in a -- it is not like they were appropriate, but to sue janet napolatono over a few things that people said, it seems preposterous, is what it seems. >> it is potentially over the top for sure. however, if these allegations are true and it was going on and janet

. >> congresswoman donna edwards and erin mcpike, thank you both for your time tonight. >> thank you. coming up, more evidence paul ryan loves stimulus money. does mr. romney have a paul ryan problem? >>> plus, big developments tonight on the assault on voting rights in ohio. and a republican who is telling the truth about their plan. we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] introducing zzzquil sleep-aid. it's not for colds, it's not for pain, it's just for sleep. because sleep is a beautiful thing. ♪ zzzquil, the non-habit forming sleep-aid from the makers of nyquil. zzzquil, ♪ intel bong i've still got hou orsf battery life. it's an ultrabook. i'm good. with an ultrabook, everything else seems old fashioned. introducing the ultra sleek, ultra long-lasting ultrabook. a whole new class of computers powered by intel. [ male announcer ] it started long ago. the joy of giving something everything you've got. it takes passion. and it's not letting up anytime soon. at unitedhealthcare insurance company, we understand that commitment. and always have. so does aarp, an organization serving th

thank you, erin mcpike and thank you, david corn. >>> up next, if this convention gets cut back to ad or two, what will the romney be all about? will it be damaged by a cut in half convention? maybe it will be helped by the pr. from tampa, we're here at the site of the republican convention. we don't know when it's going to start. hey. hey eddie. i brought your stuff. you don't have to do this. yes i do. i want you to keep this. it'd be weird. take care. you too. [ sighs ] so how did it go? he's upset. [ male announcer ] spend less time at gas stations. with best in class fuel economy. it's our most innovative altima ever. ♪ dad, we want pizza. you guys said tacos. [ female announcer ] it doesn't always work out that way. you know what? we're spending too much money on eating out anyway. honey, come look at this. [ female announcer ] my money map from wells fargo is a free online tool that helps you track your spending. so instead of having to deal with a tight budget, you could have a tighter family. ♪ wells fargo. together we'll go far. like a squirrel stashes nuts, you may be muddl

morris reid, erin mcpike and susan del percio all joining me. >> erin, i'll begin with you. two new reports out this week on the disappearing middle class. who can seize upon this? who does this information help the most? >> well, the truth is that they can both seize upon it. it should help mitt romney more because, of course, president obama is the incumbent and mitt romney has been making the argument that economic conditions have worsened under president ama. but president obama is also making the case that mitt romney doesn't understand the middle class as much and that his policies help out the rich more than the middle class. >> okay. susan, if you look at these numbers, despite them, the president is leading in the latest associated press/gfk poll, slightly today, doesn't mitt romney have a tougher sell to the middle class than the president? haven't republicans have a tougher sell? >> i agree with erin. the fact that president obama going in as the incumbent and you want change, you would expect the challenger to do slightly better. t t

david corn is an msnbc political analyst and erin mcpike is a reporter for real clear politics.avid, it seems it's been cleaned up, the act. you've got ryan speaking, governor christie speaking. ryan speaking to the conservatives. the candidate and especially the candidate's wife putting a more moderate position or moderate face on the party. none of the people that most of us would call extremists are up there on the platform, especially during network broadcast time. >> well, this is what we can call the soviet part of the campaign, when you start photo shopping out of the picture what's been happening for the past year. so when you have, you know, michele bachmann calling people un-american, you know, she won't be there. you know, you had this republican primary, where you had newt gingrich earlier, talking about food stamps. we had rick santorum saying that this is about the end of liberty, the end of freedom. they were very, very extreme and strident voices. and mitt romney, if he's going to win, and the conventional wisdom is he has to start making a play for some of the v